your realtime captioner is linda marie macdonald. the bay area enjoying another soaker this morning. hi-def doppler showing that steady rain for your morning commute. we'll tell you where it's falling the hardest and the chance of thunderstorms today. plus, this storm already causing a big mess out on the roads. a live look at the bay bridge. we'll have team coverage of the trouble spots for that flooding around the bay area. good morning, everyone. thanks so much for joining us on this wednesday, the 23rd day of march. i'm sydnie kohara. >> hi, everybody. i'm frank mallicoat. happy wednesday. time now 4:30. 11 straight days of rain and more on the way. cbs 5 is on stormwatch today. >> elizabeth wenger is standing

by at the bay bridge but first we'll check in with -- look at elizabeth with the hat on. it's raining out there. let's go to lawrence in the weather center first tracking the storm. hold on. >> almost feel guilty. those folks in the rain here's the weather guy in the nice cozy studio and folks, we have a lot of rain out there, flash flood watches up along the coastline. some of the rain coming down heavy so because of that we're watching out for the possibility of flooding. things have been very, very wet out toward the coastline all night. it started to move onshore and you can see boy, wow, look at the north bay getting pounded with heavier rainfall here in through santa rosa, san rafael, san francisco, and you can see the rain spreading in and across the bay. it's dangerous on the roads right now. i know, i just came in and folks, it's dumping out there, ponding in the roads so be careful if you have to head out to work. here's your storm system along the coastline making its way onshore. starting to put itself together and looks like we may be just getting to the back side. once we get to the back side of

the storm system in the next few hours, probably turning to more scattered showers and the possibility of some thunderstorms. so it looks like today more showers, the possibility of some isolated thunderstorm temperatures into the 50s outside, that rain continuing to fall and, of course, many places well above the average for the entire year and still more to come. we have another storm that is hot on the heels now and it looks like that will come in on thursday morning. that is going to bring with it another round of gusty wind and some heavy amounts of rainfall, showers possibly into friday. another storm on saturday, although not as strong. finally, we may start to dry out then. let's go out to elizabeth wenger out there in the midst of the storm to give us the latest. elizabeth. >> reporter: i know. thank you, lawrence. yeah, your producer earlier told me these wind gusts out here 20 to 25 miles per hour and that is really the biggest issue right now. i'm having a hard time keeping my hood on straight. it is obviously rain outing here, as well. so we can show you what it looks like here at the bay

bridge toll plaza. we're already seeing good ponding in the middle lanes where it collects. maybe we'll catch one of these drivers making a splash as they drive by. earlier there were 6-foot-tall splashes. some drivers were slowing down as they headed toward the ponding water which is a good idea. the wind a big issue out here. we have wind advisories on a lot of the bridges at the bay bridge toll plaza, san mateo bridge and richmond/san rafael. so the golden gate bridge no wind advisories this morning. also, as we were coming on the lower deck towards here towards the toll plaza from san francisco, we are driving a high-profile vehicle and i know my photographer had a hard time controlling the steering wheel so yes, dangerous driving conditions this morning. coming up here in the next little bit we'll give you some tips for how to drive safely in some of the more dangerous conditions. back to you. >> yeah, high wind and a lot of rain not a good combination. all right, elizabeth hold onto

your hat. she is at the bay bridge this morning for us. and more rain on the way and that is certainly not what they need in the santa cruz mountains. see this video? it could cause more slides like the one that covered nelson road near scotts valley. a geologist will check the slide today. the question is when to clear the slide now or when it stabilizes. more than 30 homes have been cut off because the voted blocked but the people living there getting through it by helping each other. >> we're neighbors. we all get together. we have had fires and other disasters over the years so everybody helps everybody out. we're farming the kids out to friends and stuff. and we take care of everybody else. >> sorry the kids still have to go to school. neighbors have cut a path around the slide that covers 200 feet of the road. only minor damage is reported. >> imagine someone with a camera right that the moment as

rocks are coming down. 4:34 your time. no word on when yosemite national park will be open again. all the roads leading into the park are closed due to mud slides, fallen trees, downed power lines and since the roads are closed, pg&e says it's going to have to use a helicopter now get a new power pole in place up there. it could be up to six days before the power is completely back on. for now, they are using generators for power in the park. you can always find the latest storm-related news on our website, cbssf.com. you can also find interactive hi-def doppler for your neighborhood there. just click on the weather tab and check it out. conditions are getting worse in libya -- first, let's kick it over to traffic because it's mighty wet throughout judging from elizabeth's live shot. gianna? >> it sure is, frank. days like today give yourself some extra time on the roads. we have some accidents trickle in here and there mostly spinouts and minor problems. here's live look at the bay bridge toll plaza, lots of

slick surfaces out there, those wind advisories are in effect so use caution across the span into san francisco. it's still early not a lot of cars on the roads but once the commute gets under way things will get busier. we have an accident that may cause a bit of a snag, southbound 680 at 580 couple of cars involved in the center divide. tow trucks just arriving. no injuries, but again slick slick -- slick surfaces and spectator slowing, so give yourself enough space between you and the vehicle in front of you. conditions getting worse in libya's third largest city where people say shelling and sniper attacks are now continuous. misrata is the last major western city still in the hands of rebels who are trying to oust leader moammar qaddafi. witnesses there say dozens are dead. last night a defiant qaddafi spoke to cheering supporters

outside his compound in tripoli ending rumors that he may have taken refuge outside the capital city. as for the coalition efforts to enforce a no-fly zone over libya to protect civilians, president obama says the u.s. will hand over control of the mission within days. >> we will continue to support the efforts to protect the libyan people. but we will not be in the lead. >> the u.s. and european coalition have fired more than 160 tomahawk cruise missiles at a cost of more than a million dollars apiece. and three journalists who were released in tripoli today four days after they were captured by the libyan government. two of them work for a french news service, the other a photographer for getty images. so far they are not going public with details of their detainment. four "new york times" journalists recently held for six days said they were abused while in captivity.

in japan new concerns about spread of radiation and another setback in the effort to prevent a nuclear meltdown. black smoke is rising out of one of the reactors at the crippled plant prompting another evacuation. this problem comes after workers got a major step closer to ending the crisis altogether. they restored electricity to the nuclear power plant but they have to check all the equipment before turning on the cooling systems. meantime, there is a spike in radiation levels in tokyo's tap water. authorities are now telling people not to let infants drink the tap water. infants are particularly vulnerable to radioactive iodine which causes thyroid cancer. levels of radioactive iodine tested more than twice the recommended level for the infants but not high enough to harm the adults. and the government reports the economic cost of the earthquake and the tsunami could reach $309 billion. the disaster may have killed at least 18,000 people. it is 4:38. day 3 of the barry bonds trial.

and today, federal investigator jeff nowitzki is expected to continue on the witness stand. he said he went through the trash during an investigation of balco and found evidence linking barry bonds to balco. bonds' former business partner steve hoskins is expected to be the next witness. one man who won't testify is bonds' personal trainer and friend greg anderson. he was brought to jail again yesterday for refusing to testify. the judge found him in contempt of court. anderson's attorney says he has already served time in prison for his case so he shouldn't have to go again. >> he is not going to cooperate. they didn't play fair. he is not going to play their game. it's simple as that. >> bonds is accused of lying to a federal grand jury in 2003 about his alleged receipt of anabolic steroids and other

performance-enhancing drugs from anderson. a police manhunt this morning for the gunman who killed two men and a dog in east oakland. officers were called to a home on the 6100 block of harmon avenue around 8 p.m. last night found the victims in the driveway. they died it the hospital. a second dog there was shot, as well. it survived. witnesses saw two men running from that scene. new information this morning about the passenger plane at sfo that police and bomb-sniffing dogs suspected after a called-in threat. authorities finished searching cargo overnight and found nothing suspicious. the philippines airline flight landed safely at sfo last night. among 337 passengers on board the lead singer for journey on board the plane. it is 4:40. some big cuts coming for cal state schools. how many thousands of students could be turned away, coming up. >> plus, it's been getting very ugly. a dogfight pitting neighbor against neighbor in the east bay. why the location of a proposed

park has some parents concerned there. >> and blackberry taking a play out of apple's book what makes its new tablet so different from the ipad. ,,

[ wheezing breaths ] [ woman ] the first time i smoked, i was 13. i was in a hurry to grow up and wanted to look cool. big tobacco knew it, and they preyed on me. i'm here to tell you that big tobacco hasn't changed. they continue to profit... by selling kids the same lies...

to get them to use... the same deadly products. don't be big tobacco's next victim. a cold front is moving through some heavy around the bay area. be careful on the roads. we'll talk about your forecast coming up. >> all right, lawrence. the csu system may cut enrollment by 10,000 students next school year to deal with anticipated budget cuts from the state. that's nearly 2.5% of the 420,000 students in the system this year. in addition, the 23 campuses may be asked to cut $281 million from their budget. that includes $28 million from the san francisco state budget and $13 million from cal state east bay. governor brown may have to wait until the fall to ask voters to approve a tax extension. time is running out for the

governor to get state lawmakers to approve the proposition for a special election in june. so according to sources who spoke with the "contra costa times," the governor is thinking of delay the vote until november. the governor says an extension of tax increases is necessary because budget cuts alone can't erase the state's deficit, estimated now at more than $26 billion. it is 4:44. a possible vote today could give a boost to a planned bart extension from pittsburg to antioch. the metropolitan transportation commission will all meet in oakland this morning. on the agenda, whether to put $19 million towards that extension. the money would come from bridge toll funds and will cover a small portion of the $463 million extension. and there is a meeting tonight to talk about a dog park plan for a vacant lot in oakland. the lakeview dog park would be at the north end of lake merritt between a freeway and two busy boulevards there. it would be near a playground and that has some people worried about children at the

playground being in danger. but one city councilwoman says it is the perfect place for that dog park. >> it is a high use area. and that's why it's also a very dense area with lots of people and dogs and a place that's needed for those folks to be able to walk conveniently to exercise their dogs. >> tonight's meeting is at 7:00. google's plans for a universal library have been sheffield. a new york judge rejected a deal between the web giant and the book industry citing antitrust concerns so the idea has been shelved. it would have put millions of volumes online. google has already scanned more than 15 million books for the project. you will soon have another choice when it comes to buying a tablet computer. the blackberry playbook hits store shelves april 19. preorders are already being taken through best buy. this playbook will sell for

$499. it's the same price as the ipad. the playbook can connect to a phone. it has a 7" screen, smaller than an ipad. it is 4:45. it's the way many of us start our day. how that bowl of cereal could actually save your life. >> plus a massive find in monterey county. what was hidden underground for thousands, even millions of years. >> and chris brown flips out on a morning tv program. what led to the r&b singer's dressing room meltdown, all coming up. ,,

the first time since it was damaged by tsunami waves, from the japan good morning. we are o stormwatch. yellow and oranges show heavy to moderate rainfall across much of the bay area. you can see the scattered pockets continuing in along the peninsula. if you are driving anywhere, be very careful. we have seen rain moving through and we have puddling on

the road. dangerous situation out there. at the same time, we have some flash flood watches up especially along the coast, coastal mountains, watch out there. you could see creeks rise in a hurry with rain coming in that. ground is already saturated so be careful, watch out for those rapid rises early this morning. throughout the morning, you will see clouds probably break up a little bit in the next couple hours here but still rain, some gusty winds all around the bay area. the afternoon unsettled. you will see some showers, possibility of isolated thunderstorms, and a bit on the windy side out there as it looks like we are going to see this low start to make its way on through. so here comes the cold front sliding on by now bringing with it the moisture. on the back side of it we see unstable air that could spark thunderstorms later on. today wet especially in the morning turning to showers through the middle of the morning into the afternoon with the possibility of some isolated thunderstorms. a stronger storm moves in, that one looks like it comes down

tomorrow morning. so that could be the real dangerous one because not getting much of a break in between these storm systems. rainfall around the bay area scattered to moderate to heavier rainfall right now as we head throughout the day, looks like it tapers off just a bit but there is a chance of some isolated thunderstorms popping up so be prepared all day long it's going to be one of those wet days. temperatures in the 50s outside by the afternoon so not all that cold but it is going to be wet about everywhere you go. rainy start to the day turning to showers, the possibility of thunderstorms today, another strong storm with gusty winds and periods of heavy rain early on tomorrow morning. showers continuing into friday, another storm on saturday, then finally we may just catch a break late sunday into monday. let's get a check of traffic now with gianna. >> thank you, lawrence. and, of course, all this wet weather can cause some big problems forker morning commute. we are keeping a close eye especially on the bridges this morning, the richmond/san rafael bridge, the san mateo bridge and the bay bridge all with wind advisories. here's a live look at the bay bridge right at the toll plaza, still light, very early, not a whole lot of cars on the road

yet but you can see some slick surfaces there. here's conditions on the richmond/san rafael bridge. 55 miles per hour but again, we do have a wind advisory in effect for this area. also, if you're going southbound 680 at 580, chp still clearing an accident out of the center divide. good news is we were seeing some slowing here earlier but looks like things are in the clearing stages. should be wrapping up within the next few minutes. lots of green there on the roads. northbound 101, that ramp to stinson beach highway 1, there is some flooding reported there. it is closed right now. they are hoping to re-open by noon. so that may cause a snag this morning. use an alternate if you can. overall the main lines of 101 are up to speed. heading towards the golden gate bridge not too bad. we had an earlier problem northbound 101 at delacruz that's cleared out of the roadway. 101 lots of green on the sensors, no major delays or problems, 280 problem-free, as well.

if you plan on traveling through milpitas this morning, here's a live look at 880 at 237 things moving nicely. bart has 27 trains on time. bart, ace, muni and caltrain no problems. buckle up this morning. that's a look at the drive. back to you guys. the santa cruz harbor open once again for the first time since it was damaged by tsunami waves from the japan earthquake. those waves sank or damaged more than 100 boats there on march 11. federal experts completed their investigation of the harbor sea floor and determined yesterday afternoon that the waters are safe again. there are still some minor restrictions on the dock with the heaviest damage. 4:52. in monterey county scientists have unearthed the remains of an animal that became extinct. it once roamed land not far from here. >> it's the archaeological equivalent of finding a needal

haystack. in monterey county, archeologists have uncovered a colombian mammoth skeleton, the county's first on record. >> there have been small signs of teeth and tusks. we do have a tusk at the museum. but as far as i know, this is -- and i don't know much about this particular find, but this would be one of the first complete skeletons in our area. >> mammoths in california are not necessarily rare, but skeletons are rare. >> reporter: he is the director at the uc-berkeley paleontology museum. he says it could be very old or as young as 6,000 years. they were massive creatures that stood 15 feet high at the shoulder with tusks 6 to 8 feet long and grazed on grass. to illustrate the size we tried to find something to show you how bill a full grown colombian

mammoth would be. paleontologists said it would be about the size of one of our news trucks. you might call it big bones. they were vegetarians and live off the grasslands in the area. their social behavior was probably similar to something more familiar to us. >> how to best answer that question by looking at modern elephants today, travel this herds, very social and intelligent. >> reporter: because they were so social the hope for archeologists is that this colombian mammoth wasn't the only thing preserved. >> we're like detectives. we use clues we find from the locality for instance to recreate the ecosystem, climate, environment. >> reporter: grace lee, cbs 5. >> the colombian mammoth is similar to the wooley mammoth, a few feet shorter and didn't have long hair because it lived in a warmer climate like i guess down in monterey and at one point humans did live with them but it's not known how

they interacted. today is a year since president obama signed the affordable healthcare for americans act. supporters say is it will make healthcare accessible to everyone but critics say it's expensive and won't improve healthcare. some republican lawmakers have vowed to repeal it. some provisions are already taken effect. others will be phased in over the next few years. eating cereal may reduce the risk of high blood pressure according to a new study. researchers followed more than 13,000 men, they found that those who ate cereal once a day were 25% less likely to have high blood pressure. even once a week reduced the risk. whole grain cereal is best. apparently chris brown didn't have his wheaties yesterday because he had a meltdown on "good morning america" and there may be fallout. >> we hear "dancing with the stars" might cancel his scheduled performance next week because of his actions after

this question. >> have you all seen each other, been around each other? >> i mean, i mean, not really. i mean, it's not really a big deal to me now as far as that situation. i think i'm past that in my life. >> obviously not. abc sources say brown screamed, smashed a window and ripped off his shirt before storming out of the building yesterday after the host asked him about his former girlfriend rihanna. brown pleaded got assaulting her back in 2009. the clock is ticking for lindsay lohan today. she must decide to accept a plea deal or she is going to trial. >> the troubled actress is accused of stealing a $2,500 necklace. she has until the end of the day to tell a judge whether she will take a plea deal. that deal comes with jail time according to the judge. and if lohan doesn't contact the court, the case will be going to trial with the hearing set for next month. >> that judge is being tough on

her. coming up, landslides and accidents, we have team coverage on this west windy storm. >> some nuisance flooding they are calling it here in the park n ride lot. we'll tell you where i am and how this is affecting the morning commute coming up. >> and we have a wind advisory here at the bay bridge. plus other bridges across the bay area. we'll have more on that in a few minutes. >> and more evacuations at japan's leaking nuclear plant. the new concerns about a spike in radiation in the food and water supply. ,, ,,,,,,,,,,,,

your realtime captioner is linda marie macdonald. caption colorado comments@captioncolorado.com it is a wet windy morning commute this morning. a live look, most of the bay area getting soaked right now. when we could see thunderstorms today coming up. >> you think it's a mess looking at that? the rain already causing a mess for drivers. live look in marin county where there are road closures this morning due to flooding. we have team coverage on all the trouble spots for you. and good morning, everyone. it is wednesday, the march -- march 23rd, the 23rd of march. [ laughter ] >> welcome, i'm sydnie kohara.